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Sunday, October 30, 2016

Buh Bye October

SterlingFest was on October 8. It was a cold and rainy day. Resulting in a disappointing turnout and very few sales but I did get something.A cold.

A Soggy Affair at SterlingFest

Since Paul is the susceptible one, I told him to stay away from me. Fast forward a week - I am half recovered, but Paul is sick.

Me: I told you not to kiss mePaul: But you are so hot
Me: You can kiss my toes. Why did you have to kiss my mouth?Paul: Because I like how my mustache tickles your mustache

Rangoli

He makes me laugh even when he is sick. Love him so much.

Master at Work

Today is Diwali - the festival of lights. Last night, we (Paul was in-charge) made the rangoli, to welcome the Goddess Lakshmi.

Completed Rangoli with tealights

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Being sick really does a number on your mojo. Things moved rather slowly. However, I am relieved that I managed to complete my October goal in October itself.

The first blocks - 10" finished square

Blogging had to take a back seat. I am deeply touched by the emails (from a few friends) and a phone call, asking me if I was well. They had noticed my blogging absence. Aw... you are so sweet.

Finished Flimsy

Well, I am back and I do have something to show for my rather long silence.

Aqua, Blue, Teal and Turquoise

This quilt is for Erica. Erica is my sister's sister-in-law. My sister is married to Erica's brother. For the sake of this blogpost, we shall call her Erica, but that is not her real name.

Baste? Shall we?

Backing Fabric from Connecting Threads

Erica was in New Delhi when mom was "visiting" the hospital back in April of 2016. When mom was told that the surgery was required "right now", mom panicked. It was Erica who made all the arrangements and talked to the doctors before calling my sister.

Quilting the Beast

Erica is a doctor too and she understood all the medical jargon and eased mom's fears.

Mom's follow-up surgery was scheduled for June and we (my sister and I) flew to India to be there for her.

Binding in Process

When we reached New Delhi airport, I was very surprised that Erica had come to the airport to receive us. It was a very hot, sultry night. By the time, we cleared customs and immigration it was past 11:00PM. As we loaded our luggage into the car, I noticed she had brought cold water for us. So thoughtful!!!

In the morning

She had also brought my sister's favorite sweets :-) to snack on in the car!!!
Although it would have been perfectly acceptable to wait till we got home to offer tea and snacks, I was completely floored by her attention to our comfort and joy.

A queen size beauty!!!

Erica escorted us to the Metro station next morning and ensured that we were always at ease. Further, she does this with such laid back attitude that I never felt like a guest. Her home felt like our home.

Oh, how those blues sing together

Erica also took us to the indoor mall where we ate street food. That is such a treat. Much as we crave street food, we absolutely cannot eat it anymore from the street vendors in India. Our systems, have been too insulated from Indian germs now and any exposure to unclean food/water will send us to the hospital. No, I am not exaggerating. It happened to my sister once and to me in 2012 before we learned our lesson.

I finally learned to make neat bindings :-)

Pictured in soft morning light

As we were finally packing our bags, Erica provided more snacks (sweet and savory) not just for the flight but also to take back with us.

All rolled up

I said to my sister - I need to pay her for the snacks.Sister: Nah, she is family.
She is your family. I am a step removed, remember?

When I asked Erica about the costs, she said pish-posh (or the Indian version of it).

A glimpse of me

I asked her - what is your favorite color?
Oh, I like all colors, she said.

This was not going to be easy. In any case, it had to be done. I will be delivering this quilt to my sister this weekend and her husband (Erica's brother) will deliver it to Erica when he visits her in December. Hope she likes it.

Preeti, so sorry you have been under the weather. Love your blog and posts. I have been down for a bit, too, and have been facing some health issues for me and for my little furry friend, Snickers. Your story and your quilt are both wonderful. Blue and white, how can you go wrong?! Sure hope by now that you are feeling better and will soon be quilting at a rapid pace. :)

A beautiful quilt and a beautiful story! Erica will be thrilled with the quilt and maybe a tear of joy will happen along with it. Glad you are on the mend, I know the feeling of how it can wipe us out and keep us from doing what we love. Love those Batiks!

A stubborn cold is such a nasty ailment! I hope that November will be healthier for you. The rails quilt is serene. What a lovely gift for Erica. I think the Diwali rangoli would translate well to applique.

Yes, it is a beautiful quilt. No doubt it will be well received. Sorry to hear you've had a cold -- I'm a proponent of ZiCam (it's mostly zinc) and I've not had a full blown cold for years. I sure like your backing on your blue quilt. Were you happy with the quality. I've been using their fabrics for years but haven't tried any of their wide backs.

Being sick is awful! The older we get the harder it is to recover, it just takes longer. I'm not saying you are old...I am!! Glad you are feeling better and are getting your mojo back! The quilt is beautiful...all those blues with the crisp white! I'm certain Erica will love it!

First off, I'm glad to hear that you are feeling better and sure hope Paul is on the mend. Congrats on meeting your October goal. This is a BEAUTIFUL quilt! I love all those bold blues. I think this was the sweetest thing that you could have done for Erica and it sounds like she is very deserving of such a beautiful quilt.

I'm sorry to hear about the colds. Sometimes it helps me to sew through it, at least when I can think. Your fabrics from the craft fair are darling! You have an amazing taste is fabric. The blue quilt turned out spectacular as well. I always love hearing the stories and reasons for your quilts.

Colds are no fun, glad you are feeling better. Hope Paul has recovered too. The quilt turned out beautifully! She should love it. Does it get cool enough in India to use a quilt? Congrats on the fun winnings. Looks like you'll lots of fun things to play with once you get completely recovered.

I love your posts Preeti and a belated Happy Diwali. I love the quilt - simple but elegant and the white breaks up the rails. So beautiful and she will love it. Mad About Patchwork is my source of Alison Glass fabric. I bought it and now hoard it - cannot bear to cut it up. It took me 30 days or one month to organize all my fabric by type and colour - as in the rainbow.

That quilt is absolutely gorgeous, and the backing is fabulous! Sorry you've been feeling bad - I hope you are better soon. The quilt will make a lovely gift, and I'm sure Erica will love it! Thanks for linking to MCM!

Your quilt is lovely, how thoughtful to, not only take time to repay a kindness, but take time to make such a lovely personalised gift. I love your Tonga Treats, I just love batiks, I'll look forward to seeing what you do with them.

A beautiful quilt! I'm glad you are better--I did the cold thing, too, which I followed up with a hospital stay for something unrelated--it has taken me quite a while to get back to normal. My poor blog is feeling neglected, so I understand! Glad you are back. :)

Hopefully you and Paul are feeling much better by now. I had a cold a few weeks ago and am still dealing with the cough. If it ever goes away, I will run to get my flu shot and my pneumonia vaccine.

Erica's quilt is gorgeous. The blues are happy and cheerful and will definitely convey a "thank you." You and your mom, especially, are very lucky to have such a thoughtful person in your lives. She sounds like a dream of a friend, and she absolutely is family!

You HOPE she likes it? Oh my GOODNESS ! That quilt is gorgeous, especially because of that backing ! It couldn't look more perfect, in my opinion. And, yes, it sounds like it is well-deserved. What wonderful production you made during your sick days ! Glad you're better.......and loved the moustache story.